It’s been a while since I posted here, it’s not that I have run out of things to say about Scotland and the UK, no, I have actually been rather busy building my new UK Hotels site SimplyTop.com. I have also been hard at work trying to make something of my front garden and although there is still a fair bit to do I have started to think about my other sites, especially those about the Isle of Harris and the Outer Hebrides. I’ve just completed a couple of sites dedicated to hotels on Skye after spending a wonderful couple of days there getting our car serviced and I have just revamped my site Virtual Skye with a view to expanding it considerably over the next year or so (yes there really is that much to see and do on Skye!).  The next islands I plan to visit are the Isle of Arran and, in the autumn, I plan to visit the Isle of Mull but for now I am happy enjoying the wonderful Isle of Harris.

I own and run a number of web sites dedicated to the Hebrides and, in particular, the Isle of Harris. My interest first began when I built a site called the “Alternative Hebrides” and a huge site about the tiny Isle of Scalpay. Over the years I accummulated a huge number of small sites but when the wonderful Virtual Hebrides site closed I decided to grab what I could and merge it with all of the sites of my own to create a new and larger Virtual Hebrides site. My intentions were good but my patience wasn’t and I was soon creating new sites all over the place. Following the collapse of the financial sector and the loss of some major clients I decided to concentrate on some of these older sites that have, sadly, been overlooked over the last few years. One of these sites was my Leverburgh site which had been turned over to a community broadband project that ceased several years ago (the Outer Hebrides has the most expensive broadband in the UK  – £450 a month for a 4mb connection the last time I checked!). While building the new site, which gives details of Harris bed & breakfast, Harris self catering and Harris hotel accommodation as well as some details about Harris and the village,  I realised how long it has been since I spent some time photographing this amazing place. Having gained a few successes over on Skye I am keen to get back into photography at home on Harris especially the incredible beaches.

One of the main reasons why people take vacations on the Isle of Harris is that all along the west coast of the island you will find numerous spectacular sandy beaches with the cleanest waters in the United Kingdom. Beaches such as Seilabost, Nisabost, Huishnish, Luskintyre and the likes are amongst the most popular but when I say popular do not expect to be confronted with masses of beach towels, sand castles and wind breaks because it is highly likely that you will find yourself alone on one of the most beautiful beaches in Great Britain. Obviously there will be times when there may be one or two other families there also but these beaches are often so huge that you barely notice them. If you would prefer somewhere a little more private then just drive a little further down the road, watching out for a small cove, and just pull over and park up. Some beaches require a short walk to reach them but I promise you that the extra effort is well rewarded.

Most of the best beaches on Harris are found towards the south of the island and you will find that most of the finest are within a few minutes drive of Leverburgh. Leverburgh has a number of places to stay such as Grimisdale Guest House and a little further up the road you will find superb self catering accommodation. Staying in Harris bed & breakfast accommodation is a real treat, Hebridean hospitality is world renowned and is an important element of the Gaelic culture and great emphasis is made in ensuring that visitors are made extremely welcome. Wherever you choose to stay you can be sure that it will be clean, fresh, relaxing and, above all, peaceful. Until you have spent time on the Isle of Harris you will not fully understand the pleasure of falling asleep in total silence only broken by the sounds of the sea. Of course the closer you are the louder this sound is but even if you are staying in a guest house on the shore the sound of the waves induces deep comfortable sleep.

The majority of attractions on Harris relate to the unique environment. The lack of pollution, the small number of humans and the variety of landscapes all amount to the perfect environment for flora and fauna to flourish. Wild flowers carpet the coastal grasslands known as machair and while trees are something of a rarity (the Harris deer forest has no trees) there are a few plantations of native trees and shrubs which are slowly maturing and enhancing the countryside. Sadly you will also find a couple of small plantations of evergreens but, thankfully, mans fixation with covering the Scottish hillsides with pine has decreased considerably and Harris avoided the worst of this abominable practice of exploiting the landscape.

Industry on the Isle of Harris is generally confined to fishing and sheep farming with smaller cottage industries, such as the weaving of Harris Tweed, supplementing their income. Although not as many crops are grown on the islands these days it is still common to see crofts (small holdings) with rows of potatoes fertilized with seaweed from the shore. Some crofts keep a few Highland cattle and though these beasts make for an excellent photo opportunity it is important to remember that these are, basically, wild creatures and extremely strong and heavy, so it is extremely important to stand well clear and towards the front end! Crofting is a way of life that has an eventful history and while many farming practices destroy the natural habitat of many of our native creatures crofting tends to benefit the environment. One of our rarest of birds, the Corncrake, relies upon crofting to create the birds most favoured environment.

If you enjoy bird watching then the Outer Hebrides should be high on your list of places to visit. While many will arrive in search of the Golden Eagle much pleasure can be had from watching the many other species that live or visit here. While the open moorland affords the protection (in the heather) that many species need it is along the shore that bird life is most apparent, especially on mud flats. Sitting enjoying the amazing views across a loch while a Heron sits patiently and otters splash about further along the shore is not an uncommon occurrence and, depending upon the time of day, you may even witness the astounding sight of stag or deer (though they tend to take flight at the sight of humans).

One of the best places, in the Outer Hebrides, to go bird watching is actually over on the Uists (North Uist & South Uist) where you will find an excellent RSPB sanctuary. Getting over to these islands is easy from Leverburgh, you simply catch the ferry over to Berneray. Many people who take a vacation here choose to spend some time in the village then travel over to the other islands where they then spend a few more days before setting off back home.

One of the main reasons why people take vacations on the Isle of Harris is that all along the west coast of the

island you will find numerous spectacular sandy beaches with the cleanest waters in the United Kingdom. Beaches

such as Seilabost, Nisabost, Huishnish, Luskintyre and the likes are amongst the most popular but when I say

popular do not expect to be confronted with masses of beach towels, sand castles and wind breaks because it is

highly likely that you will find yourself alone on one of the most beautiful beaches in Great Britain. Obviously

there will be times when there may be one or two other families there also but these beaches are often so huge

that you barely notice them. If you would prefer somewhere a little more private then just drive a little further

down the road, watching out for a small cove, and just pull over and park up. Some beaches require a short walk to

reach them but I promise you that the extra effort is well rewarded.

Most of the best beaches on Harris are found towards the south of the island and you will find that most of the

finest are within a few minutes drive of Leverburgh. Leverburgh has a number of places to stay such as Grimisdale

Guest House and a little further up the road you will find superb self catering accommodation. Staying in Harris

bed & breakfast accommodation is a real treat, Hebridean hospitality is world renowned and is an important element

of the Gaelic culture and great emphasis is made in ensuring that visitors are made extremely welcome. Wherever

you choose to stay you can be sure that it will be clean, fresh, relaxing and, above all, peaceful. Until you have

spent time on the Isle of Harris you will not fully understand the pleasure of falling asleep in total silence

only broken by the sounds of the sea. Of course the closer you are the louder this sound is but even if you are

staying in a guest house on the shore the sound of the waves induces deep comfortable sleep.

The majority of attractions on Harris relate to the unique environment. The lack of pollution, the small number of

humans and the variety of landscapes all amount to the perfect environment for flora and fauna to flourish. Wild

flowers carpet the coastal grasslands known as machair and while trees are something of a rarity (the Harris deer

forest has no trees) there are a few plantations of native trees and shrubs which are slowly maturing and

enhancing the countryside. Sadly you will also find a couple of small plantations of evergreens but, thankfully,

mans fixation with covering the Scottish hillsides with pine has decreased considerably and Harris avoided the

worst of this abominable practice of exploiting the landscape.

Industry on the Isle of Harris is generally confined to fishing and sheep farming with smaller cottage industries,

such as the weaving of Harris Tweed, supplementing their income. Although not as many crops are grown on the

islands these days it is still common to see crofts (small holdings) with rows of potatoes fertilized with seaweed

from the shore. Some crofts keep a few Highland cattle and though these beasts make for an excellent photo

opportunity it is important to remember that these are, basically, wild creatures and extremely strong and heavy,

so it is extremely important to stand well clear and towards the front end! Crofting is a way of life that has an

eventful history and while many farming practices destroy the natural habitat of many of our native creatures

crofting tends to benefit the environment. One of our rarest of birds, the Corncrake, relies upon crofting to

create the birds most favoured environment.

If you enjoy bird watching then the Outer Hebrides should be high on your list of places to visit. While many will

arrive in search of the Golden Eagle much pleasure can be had from watching the many other species that live or

visit here. While the open moorland affords the protection (in the heather) that many species need it is along the

shore that bird life is most apparent, especially on mud flats. Sitting enjoying the amazing views across a loch

while a Heron sits patiently and otters splash about further along the shore is not an uncommon occurrence and,

depending upon the time of day, you may even witness the astounding sight of stag or deer (though they tend to

take flight at the sight of humans).

One of the best places, in the Outer Hebrides, to go bird watching is actually over on the Uists (North Uist &

South Uist) where you will find an excellent RSPB sanctuary. Getting over to these islands is easy from

Leverburgh, you simply catch the ferry over to Berneray. Many people who take a vacation here choose to spend some

time in the village then travel over to the other islands where they then spend a few more days before setting off

back home.